maggie drummed her fingers on a table in o'malley's tapped her foot,blew out a long breath.''tim,will u givee me a bookmarker's sandwich togo HUONG LAN with this pin...???i can't wait murphy all bloody afternoon on an empty stomach.''
''happy to do it.got a date,do u...???''he grinned at her from over the bar,wriggled his eyesbrown.
''Hah.The day when i date murphy muldoon's the day i lose what's left of my mind.he said he had some business in the village and would i meet him here.''she tapped box on the floor with her.''i've got his birthday's present for his mother.''
''something u made,then...???
''aye.and if he's not here by the times i've finished eating,he'll have to come fetch it himself.
''alice muldoon,'' said david ryan,who sat at the bar puffing a cigarette.''she be living down to killarney now,wouldn't she...???''
''she would,''maggie agreed.''and has been these past ten years or more.''
''didn't think i'd seen her about.married again,did she,after rory muldoon passed over...???''
''she did.''tim took up the story while he built a pint of guinners.''married a rich doctor's name of colin brennan.''
''kin to daniel brennan.''another patron picked up the tale,musing over his bolw of stew.''u known,he that's runs food store in clarecastle.''
''no,no.''tim shook his head as he walked over to serve maggie her sandwich.''tisn't kin to daniel brennan but to bobby brennan from newmarket on fergus.''
''i think you're wrong about that.''david pointed with the stub of his cigarette.''i'll wager two's pound on it.''
''done.we'll ask murphy himself.''
''if he ever gets here,''maggie muttered,and bit into her sandwich.''you'd think i have nothing better todo than to sit here twiddling my thumbs.''
''i knew a brennan once.''the old man at the end of the bar spoke up,paused,blew a lazy smoke ring.''frankie brennan,he was,fromn ballybunion,where i lived as a boy.once night he was walking home from the pub.had a fill of porter,he did,and never had the head for it.'' amen amen amen

he blew another smoke ring.time passed,but no one spoke.a story was in the making.''so he went walking home,reeling a-bit,and cut across a field to shorten the waye.there was a fairy hill,and in his drunken state,he trod right over it.